Time Warner offers phone service via Net

A new phone service has hit the Houston market, adding fuel to already fierce competition among land-line service providers.

Time Warner Cable is now offering a voice-over Internet service to areas inside the Sam Houston Tollway. The service transfers signals through Time Warner's broadband network rather than through a traditional phone line.

"The quality is exactly the same as traditional phone service," said T. Ray Purser, spokesman for Time Warner Cable-Houston. "You will not notice any difference at all."

The digital service gives customers unlimited long-distance and local calling for under $50. It includes features such as call waiting and caller ID. All phone lines are routed through a newly installed modem.

Customers who already have Time Warner's high-speed Internet and digital cable can get the service for under $40.

The launch of the service comes at a time when industry competition is heating up. Last month, AT&T said it would stop vying for new residential long-distance customers and switch its focus to high-speed Internet. SBC Communications, the dominant land-line provider for the Houston area, launched a media campaign to convert disconnected AT&T users.

SBC Communications says it is not worried about competition from the new phone service contender. It is also looking into phone service over the Internet but is not yet offering the option for residential customers.

"There are things that are not worked out with voice-over Internet protocol," said SBC spokeswoman Katie Ramsey. "We don't think voice-over Internet protocol is ready to take over all customers' needs right now."

She said, for instance, that the service does not work if there is a power outage.

For those who don't already have Time Warner high-speed Internet and digital cable, SBC offers a comparable price for phone service. Customers can get unlimited local and long-distance service for $48.95, compared with Time Warner's $49.95.

But Purser says Time Warner's digital phone service targets those who already have Time Warner's other two services.

"We are not trying to compete on a stand-alone telephone service," Purser said.